Essential Utilities (NYSE:WTRG) Price Target Cut to $43.00

Essential Utilities (NYSE:WTRG) had its target price reduced by analysts at Robert W. Baird from $44.00 to $43.00 in a report released on Monday, Benzinga reports. The firm presently has an “outperform” rating on the stock. Robert W. Baird’s price target suggests a potential upside of 13.82% from the company’s previous close.

Separately, Evercore ISI cut their price objective on Essential Utilities from $51.00 to $42.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, March 4th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating and five have issued a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $43.00.

Essential Utilities Price Performance

Shares of WTRG opened at $37.78 on Monday. The company has a market capitalization of $10.33 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 17.91, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.29 and a beta of 0.80. Essential Utilities has a fifty-two week low of $32.07 and a fifty-two week high of $43.74. The firm has a 50-day simple moving average of $35.86 and a 200-day simple moving average of $35.89. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.13, a quick ratio of 0.48 and a current ratio of 0.62.

Essential Utilities (NYSE:WTRG) last released its earnings results on Friday, February 23rd. The company reported $0.50 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.49 by $0.01. Essential Utilities had a return on equity of 8.62% and a net margin of 29.52%. The business had revenue of $479.40 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $708.50 million. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $0.44 earnings per share. The company’s revenue for the quarter was down 32.0% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities research analysts anticipate that Essential Utilities will post 2 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling at Essential Utilities

In other news, CAO Robert A. Rubin sold 5,565 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Monday, April 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $37.21, for a total value of $207,073.65. Following the sale, the chief accounting officer now directly owns 57,756 shares in the company, valued at $2,149,100.76. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. In related news, CAO Robert A. Rubin sold 5,565 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, April 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $37.21, for a total transaction of $207,073.65. Following the sale, the chief accounting officer now owns 57,756 shares in the company, valued at $2,149,100.76. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, CAO Robert A. Rubin sold 2,023 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, May 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $36.56, for a total value of $73,960.88. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief accounting officer now owns 13,358 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $488,368.48. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.21% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of WTRG. Choreo LLC increased its position in Essential Utilities by 3.1% during the third quarter. Choreo LLC now owns 10,417 shares of the company’s stock worth $358,000 after purchasing an additional 311 shares during the last quarter. Lindbrook Capital LLC increased its holdings in shares of Essential Utilities by 78.9% during the 4th quarter. Lindbrook Capital LLC now owns 737 shares of the company’s stock worth $28,000 after buying an additional 325 shares during the last quarter. Bank Julius Baer & Co. Ltd Zurich raised its position in shares of Essential Utilities by 3.1% in the 3rd quarter. Bank Julius Baer & Co. Ltd Zurich now owns 10,831 shares of the company’s stock worth $372,000 after buying an additional 328 shares during the period. VisionPoint Advisory Group LLC boosted its holdings in Essential Utilities by 52.9% in the fourth quarter. VisionPoint Advisory Group LLC now owns 977 shares of the company’s stock valued at $36,000 after acquiring an additional 338 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Hamilton Point Investment Advisors LLC grew its position in Essential Utilities by 0.5% during the fourth quarter. Hamilton Point Investment Advisors LLC now owns 69,788 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,607,000 after acquiring an additional 342 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 74.78% of the company’s stock.

Essential Utilities Company Profile

Essential Utilities, Inc, through its subsidiaries, operates regulated utilities that provide water, wastewater, or natural gas services in the United States. The company operates through Regulated Water and Regulated Natural Gas segments. It offers water services through operating and maintenance contract with municipal authorities and other parties.